Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Safer Racing With Head And Neck Restraint Systems

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By Teri Farley


Regardless if one is a professional or an amateur race car driver, it is important that he should value his safety, just as much as winning that race. Extreme sports like race car driving involves danger in just about any corner. There have been thousands of injuries recorded as racing related injuries due to crashes which could cause severe damages particularly to the upper part of the body hence the need for one to wear head and neck restraint systems.

Basal skull fracture is said to be one of the most fatal injury in race car driving as it causes death. The main cause of such fracture would be the violent motion of an inadequately restrained head during crashes. That sudden impact of a car to a stationary post or area will cause a crack at the base of the skull, where most of the major blood vessels are found and cause rupture.

The rupture of these vessels will deplete the amount of blood going to the brain hence causing death, at some times in an instant. Death caused by basal skull fracture is continuously increasing among race car drivers and this prompted two of the most prominent racing organizations, NASA and SCCA to require these devices to all their racers.

When one is considering to buy such device, a number of factors have to be considered. For starters, make sure that the device is SFI-approved. For a device to be considered efficient and safe, it should meet the specifications from either SFI 38.1 or FIA 8859. In fact, respected race car organizations mandated that all devices used should be within such guidelines.

Basal skull fracture is one of the most life threatening injuries in racing however it was commonly ignored for years. In fact, these safety devices were not taken seriously at all up until major crashes in the track are getting more prominent and an increasing number of death caused by such fracture became more noticeable.

There are four manufacturers that meet SFI 38.1 specifications as of present. Although this may sound like your choice will be limited, there are actually a lot of choices for an SFI approved equipment as these manufacturers provide several equipments at a different price ranges. There will be a broad range of products that one can check out, all of which may have different features and price.

When looking for the most reliable safety device, it is important for one to consider several factors. To start with make sure that the manufacturer of the device is SFI approved. There are about four manufacturers whose products passed the specifications of SFI 38.1, and these should only be the products one has to choose from.

Indeed, comfort is a vital key when choosing a restrain system. Being uncomfortable with your device may affect your performance and it may not be as efficient as you thought it would be. Make sure to choose devices only from manufacturers who passed the different requirements and specifications from different organization to ensure durability, efficiency and safety.

The importance of head and neck restraint systems is unexplainable. Racing may be about speed and beating your opponent through it this does not mean one cannot do such sport or activity with safety.




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